Hearing local concerns

East Coast National candidate Dana Kirkpatrick (left), Rotorua MP Todd McClay and Napier National candidate Katie Nimon met voters at the Ngatapa RFC clubrooms. Picture supplied

The cost of living, crime and frustration over the Government’s response to infrastructure damage caused by storms are constant themes National Party candidate Dana Kirkpatrick says she is encountering from East Coast voters.

The first-time candidate has shown National Party MP and trade, agriculture, fishing and hunting spokesman Todd McClay around the region and both say such concerns are common.

“Everywhere I go, all I ever hear about, if you’re not talking about crime, is potholes,” she said.

Roading and other infrastructure were particularly crucial issues in Gisborne.

Health and education were other key issues.

She is concerned about “getting kids to school and making sure they are learning”, and an inadequate number of people getting further qualifications at trade schools and similar institutions.

“We used to do so well at EIT.”

Ms Kirkpatrick says she is working hard to win East Coast on October 14.

Cabinet Minister Kiri Allan won East Coast three years ago by 6331 votes during the Covid-inspired landslide victory, to become the first Labour candidate to win the local seat in 18 years.

“There’s a lot of work to do,” said Ms Kirkpatrick.

“We are not taking our foot off the pedal at all.”

National would continue to launch common sense policy while the Labour Government continued “to implode”.

Mr McClay, an MP since 2008 and a former cabinet minister,  said he had met members of the local hunting and fishing community and the local agriculture sector.

The visit had been extremely positive.

There was much frustration with the slow speed of progress from storm recovery and repair.

Some people were in desperate circumstances.

Announcements from Wellington were not enough.

“You have to roll your sleeves up and make sure the support is delivered quickly and efficiently, because livelihoods are at risk.

Mr McClay said some Gisborne residents felt announcements were being held up until it was the best time for the Government to make them.

It shouldn’t be political but be about announcing programmes as quickly as possible.

Those programmes had to be launched immediately.

Farmers were still waiting to remove silt with funding from announcements made some time ago.

Gisborne was an important and productive part of the New Zealand economy and the Government needed to put more effort into recovery.

It was a complex situation with repeat weather events, but people needed certainty and they needed infrastructure rebuilt.

An incoming National Government would return water services to local bodies with central government offering a partnership in funding infrastructure and delivery.

Mr McClay, a former trade minister, said Australian farmers were correct in expressing major reservations with New Zealand’s Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the European Union.

It was a good deal for everything except dairy and meat.

“That’s a shame because they are the most heavily protected sectors in the world, and those are the ones we produce very well.”

The FTA only allowed for an additional 10,000 tonnes of New Zealand beef into the European Union which consumed 6.5 million tonnes of beef annually.

The Government had rushed to a deal where Australia had kept negotiating.

“The proof will be in the pudding.”

Mr McClay said his Australian contacts were telling him Australian negotiators were making inroads, particularly with beef.

The two candidates, along with National’s Napier candidate Katie Nimon, attended a public meeting at Ngatapa RFC which was attended by about 60 people.

The Napier electorate almost reaches the outskirts of Gisborne and goes inland as far as Matawai.

Ms Nimon, of the well-known bus company-owning family, stood in Napier back in 2020 and lost to then Labour cabinet minister Stuart Nash by 5856 votes.